My Dad, MLK, Would Back Glenn Beck's Right to Rally

The son of Martin Luther King Jr. says his father "would be the first to say" that Glenn Beck and his supporters have the right to rally in Washington this weekend—the anniversary of the "I Have a Dream" speech. But he'd like to remind everyone of a few of his father's values: "His dream rejected hateful rhetoric and all forms of bigotry or discrimination, whether directed at race, faith, nationality, sexual orientation or political beliefs," writes MLK III in the Washington Post.

Nor did he ever claim that God was on his side. Instead, "he prayed humbly that he was on God's side." And "throughout his life he advocated compassion for the poor, nonviolence, respect for the dignity of all people and peace for humanity," writes King. That was part of the "social gospel" he embraced—that any worthy religion must be primarily concerned with the "poor and disadvantaged."
(More Martin Luther King III stories.)